Atlantic 10 Basketball: 10 elements that have stood out so far in 2022-23

5. VCU’s Lords of Leaping

It is possible for an already top-notch athlete to develop the ability to jump higher over the summer? Because it looks like that happened to Jalen DeLoach.  He is absolutely soaring through the air on blocked shots this season.  Beyond that, be sure to watch him rebounding in traffic because he gets his hand on every shot that goes up and is consistently rising up to tip balls out of the paint.

Meanwhile, Michigan transfer Zeb Jackson might be the best pure athlete that Mike Rhoades has ever coached on the wing. Jackson goes up for one-handed steals like an NFL receiver and makes it look quite effortless.  He also already looks extremely comfortable spearheading the press and while VCU’s guards don’t have the disruptive length that Dayton possesses, they make up for it with great defensive speed.

6. Tyler Burton at Center

This was a little quirk that popped up for Richmond against Wichita St, when Matt Grace was out with an injury and Neal Quinn was on the bench.  It was a delight to see Burton operating at the foul line with four shooters around him, as he has become a good enough passer to be a serious distribution threat from that hub point.  But unlike Quinn and Grant Golden before him, Burton’s smooth foul line jumper is absolutely lethal and prevents his defender from being able to sag off to protect from the drive and the cutters on the wing.

I doubt we see much more of this lineup, especially against the massive frontlines in conference play but Coach Chris Mooney should keep it as an emergency option for when the Spiders’ offense goes stagnant. It’s the best lineup for opening up space all over the floor and gives Burton a chance to attack from different points on the floor.

7. George Mason: Still The Same?

The Patriots brought in an extremely impressive recruiting class that was meant to turn a thin roster into a deep, flexible one around Josh Oduro, DeVon Cooper, and Devonta Gaines.  Tennessee transfer Victor Bailey Jr (13.6 ppg) has lived up to expectations and has been an excellent replacement for DeShawn Schwartz. And yet, through five games, George Mason has mostly leaned on the aforementioned quartet and last year’s starting point guard Ronald Polite III, who was supposed to move to the bench (and did the first half of the first game) but is already playing the bulk of the minutes at the position.

The bench unit is certainly better than last year’s group, but other than a few moments of brilliance from Justyn Fernandez (3 threes vs Longwood) and Ginika Ojiako providing rebounding and toughness in the Oduro-less minutes, no one has made a big impact.  The key to George Mason’s season is going to be increased flexibility beyond Oduro, Cooper, Gaines, and Bailey but to this point, they have had to carry the burden.  The talent is there but the production isn’t yet.